1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to rigid elements for positioning on a broken limb of a human or animal body to keep the limb immobile or for use in keeping a part of the body in a fixed position.
2. Description of the Prior Art
When a limb or digit is broken it is highly desirable to splint it immediately to prevent further damage to the ends of the broken bone or to the muscles, ligaments or blood vesels. After such immobilization the patient can then be moved with relative safety to a hospital. The rigid element used to splint the injured part must usually be improvised and may be a board, cane, bar, or even an umbrella. If splining is done by an ambulance attendant, rigid splints made for the purpose such as molded plastic splints may be used.
After a bone has been set by the surgeon he generally applies a plaster cast which stays on until the bone has knit. However, if the bone has been pinned after setting, the case, after several days is split longitudinally and temporarily removed so that the patient can get some exercise. This is highly desirable to prevent the formation of thrombi.